Halloween Spirit Week 2014

This fall, Fraser hosted its annual Halloween Spirit Week. Organized by the SAC, the days leading up to October 31st were filled with different attractions and themes that got the students into the spirit of Halloween. The first day, October 27th, was kicked off with John Fraser's very own Haunted House. SAC members transformed the entire gym, and even parts of the changing rooms, into a terrifying maze filled with obstacles that students had to go through in order to get out. The Haunted House is an annual occurrence and has been the highpoint of every Halloween spirit week at Fraser. This year was no different; SAC was able to exceed the expectations of all the students and had made the haunted house just as much, if not even more, frightening and thrilling as last year's. The Haunted House kicked off the spirit week and was also the day that students and staff dressed up as their favourite characters! The next day was a day in which everyone showed off their athletic side by wearing jerseys, hats, t-shirts and all the gear from their favourite sport's teams. Alongside that, the student body was enjoying SAC's Mummy Face-Off; students competed in pairs of 4 against another pair, and the goal of the game was to wrap their friends in toilet paper the fastest. The winning group in each round received candy. The third day of the Spirit week was grade wars. Since it was junior vs. senior, grade 9s and 10s wore orange while the 12s and 11s wore black. At the same time, Monsters Inc. was being played in the cafeteria. Thursday, October 30th, was zombie day. The halls were filled with students covered in scars and tattered clothes. SAC even performed a zombie themed flash mob! On the day of Halloween, everyone wore and flaunted their homemade or store-purchased costumes. Needless to say, Halloween spirit week 2014 was a success.

Meshail Akram

We Scare Hunger

When you think Halloween, you think candy, not cans. This year, Fraser's Minga Council hosted We Scare Hunger, an initiative started by MetoWe , in which students go around on Halloween night to collect canned food and non-perishable items, instead of candy. The collections were then donated to the local food bank. With more than 30 participants, this year's campaign was a hit. Over 1,800 cans were collected and donated to the Mississauga Food Bank, the only source of food to many local families. Thanks to all of those who helped out, many families had food on their plates this fall. Fraser, once again, made the news. Way to make us proud! Definitely not for the last time, the John Fraser students reached out and left their mark within the community.

Rafia Ajmal

Project BAN (Bridge Ageism Now)

Project BAN is an initiative of the Young Social Innovators (YSI) campaign from Ireland. YSI is a student-led platform to create change and raise awareness about a social issue. A small group of students is chosen, along with a few teachers as guides. This year, it was introduced to Canada as a pilot project, making John Fraser one of the first four schools to participate, along with Stephen Lewis, St. Roch and Central Peel. A team of twelve students from John Fraser was chosen by staff advisors. This team was made up of students from each grade, including Rabia Moin, Sanjna Rajput, Anita Sikic, Ankita Binu, Jack Yang, Robert Marica, Adil Khan, Sohaila Hassan, Mariam Attia, Pargol Sanaat, Matin Sanaat and Rafia Ajmal. The team decided to focus on the issue of ageism, the neglect of a certain group due to their age. Ageism among elders is the most tolerated form of prejudice in Canada, the team wanted to battle that. To tackle these ageist stereotypes and raise awareness of this issue, the John Fraser team collaborated with the Village of Erin Meadows, a long-term care facility in the community. Planning began as early as November, but the visits began in early February. Each pair of students was teamed up with an elder at the Village. From then on, the team visited the Village on Monday's after school for a period of two months. On April 16th, YSI held their annual Speak Out, hosted by FUSE in Brampton. The purpose of this speak out was to creatively summarize the experience and the impact that was made. This speak out would be evaluated along with a report submitted earlier in the process. With the help of the very talented Ms. Broome and after countless rehearsals, John Fraser's team came first! John Fraser's team now holds the title of the first Canadian team to win the Young Social Innovators award. Congratulations team! A huge thank you goes out the staff advisors, Ms. Parmar and Mr. Ghorvei; thank you for introducing this initiative to John Fraser.

Click HERE to view the documentary filmed by FUSE Brampton which includes the celebration event at the Village of Erin Meadows. Our talented students proudly spoke about their experiences at the Village.

Rafia Ajmal

With the amount of accomplishments at Fraser, it's hard to keep track! Keep an eye out; new stories coming soon!